Han Li looked at the token in his hand, signed by the heads of various sects, authorizing the mobilization of disciples for travel. He felt extremely frustrated!

The mobilization order seemed genuine, as it bore the emblem representing a sect's head, which couldn't be forged. But he really didn't want to comply just like that!

Because from the other party's words, Han Li had learned about the invasion of the six demon sects and knew that a great calamity in the cultivation world of Yue Country was inevitable.

Whether the seven sects of Yue Country could survive this ordeal remained uncertain, but it was certain that thousands of cultivators would perish, even those in the Foundation Establishment stage might meet their end.

So upon learning this astonishing news, what Han Li wanted most now was to immediately return to his cave abode and enter seclusion for several decades before coming out again.

However, he also knew that this was just wishful thinking. As a disciple of the seven sects, it wouldn't be easy to escape this great conflict.

While Han Li was pondering, the male cultivator from Concealing Moon Sect who announced that he had been mobilized smiled and said, "Junior Brother, have you read it clearly? Can you please state your name and cultivation level? We will have many opportunities to cooperate in the future!"

Han Li focused his thoughts, glanced at the man, and then at the thirty-plus cultivators behind him. Among them, only three were in the Foundation Establishment stage, while the rest were only Qi Condensation disciples. This made Han Li feel somewhat relieved, at least it didn't seem like they were on some highly dangerous mission.

Thinking of this, Han Li clasped his fists and said, "Han Li from Yellow Maple Valley, Foundation Establishment Initial Stage!"

Although both were in the Foundation Establishment stage, their respective cultivation levels were obvious at a glance. But out of politeness, Han Li still honestly stated his cultivation level. After all, the other party was in the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, significantly higher than him, and he didn't want to offend him easily.

But then, Han Li asked with some doubt, "How can you be sure that there is no problem with my identity and just intercept me and show the mobilization order? Is it not just based on this Yellow Maple Valley clothing?"

Originally, when Han Li saw this group of cultivators from Huadian Fortress and Concealing Moon Sect, he had wanted to slip away and flee far. However, this sharp-eyed guy directly intercepted him with a few flashes and then announced that he was being mobilized.

"Hehe! During the Blood Trial last time, I saw Junior Brother at a glance! I didn't expect that after so many years, Junior Brother Han has successfully reached the Foundation Establishment stage. This is truly a joyous occasion!" The man in his thirties from Concealing Moon Sect smiled faintly and said something that surprised Han Li greatly.

"You are...?"

Being reminded by the other party, Han Li felt that the man looked somewhat familiar, indeed he had seen him during the Blood Trial!

"I am Xuān Lè, one of the external affairs managers of Concealing Moon Sect. Last time, when I accompanied Senior Martial Uncle Ní Shāng's team, I witnessed Junior Brother Han's amazing performance!" The man chuckled lightly, speaking meaningfully.

At this moment, Han Li suddenly realized that this person was one of the four Foundation Establishment stage leaders of Concealing Moon Sect at that time. He just didn't pay much attention to him back then, so his impression was a bit vague. But Han Li was astonished again when he thought about it. They only met briefly back then, yet this person recognized him from such a distance. It was truly unbelievable.

"I understand that Junior Brother Han is in a hurry to leave, there must be urgent matters. However, the manpower needed for the task is insufficient, so I have to ask Junior Brother to assist." Xuān Lè said politely.

But upon hearing this, Han Li twitched his mouth and couldn't help but think bitterly, "As a Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivator, even if you take out the mobilization order, I can still refuse. But I'm afraid that would earn me a label of disobedience! "

Thinking like this, Han Li glanced at the other three Foundation Establishment stage cultivators behind Xuān Lè and had to answer reluctantly, "Since Senior Brother Xuān said so, Han will naturally comply! However, I have an important matter to report to the sect leader. I hope Senior Brother Xuān can send someone to deliver the message!"

Then Han Li recounted everything that happened at Yanling Castle in detail, only glossing over his own escape.

But even so, it shocked Xuān Lè and the others. They quickly dispatched two Qi Condensation disciples to deliver letters to various sects, and then continued to lead Han Li on the road with somewhat unpleasant expressions.

With their strength, even if they knew that the Yan family had colluded with the demonic path, they didn't dare to demand justice or rescue. They could only leave this hot potato to the people dispatched by the seven sects. Of course, the authenticity of this news from Han Li still needed to be verified by others.

On the way, Han Li finally learned about the mission of this trip from other cultivators. It was to strengthen the guard of a large reserve of spirit stone mines because the original guards were insufficient to resist the raids of small groups of demonic cultivators.

Knowing that the mission wasn't about directly confronting the six demon sects, Han Li finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Even if he could return to Yellow Maple Valley, he might be sent out immediately, and the assigned task might not be better than this.

Although this mission was still somewhat dangerous, as long as he was careful, the possibility of returning unscathed was still quite high. After all, this spirit stone mine was just one of the larger ones among a dozen, and if the other party wanted to raid the sects, they would probably target the largest ones first.

Thinking like this, Han Li's resistance dissipated, and he became quite familiar with Xuān Lè and other cultivators in the next few days.

Several days later, their group of cultivators finally arrived at a vast wilderness within Yue Country's borders. The spirit stone mine was located in a deep canyon in the wilderness, reaching over a hundred feet deep.

Under Xuān Lè's guidance, the group flew directly into the concealed canyon. At the same time, several cultivators from the seven sects flew out to greet them.

The head of the original guards of the spirit mine was an elderly man in the early Foundation Establishment stage, belonging to Heaven's Peak Castle. The other five or six were only at the Qi Condensation level.

With such weak guarding force, it was no wonder that the higher-ups of the seven sects urgently dispatched reinforcements.

The elderly man, who called himself Yú Xīng, led them into a huge cave in the canyon, where Han Li and the others listened to his detailed explanation of the spirit stone mine's situation. Then, Xuān Lè swiftly arranged the defense.

He took out a dozen or so array flags and array discs, allowing the cultivators to set up a reversible Four Fiends Formation under the illusion array. Then, he divided Han Li and the other cultivators into teams, taking

turns to patrol near the spirit mine to prevent surprise attacks from external enemies. When not on duty, the cultivators could meditate and cultivate their mana.

Han Li was very satisfied with Xuān Lè's arrangement.

This way, he would have time to make up for the gaps in his strength!

After experiencing a battle with the Ghostly Spirit Sect's young master, Han Li clearly felt that his previous reliance on agility and strategy to win against opponents was simply insufficient to deal with the huge gap in strength. Faced with formidable opponents like the Ghostly Spirit Sect's young master, everything he had previously relied on seemed feeble. Even the treasures he had placed high hopes on almost fell into the hands of the opponent, failing to reproduce the miraculous effects of the past.

If not for the unexpected effect of the "Azure Fire Miasma," he would have long been buried in the yellow earth, and even his soul might have been captured by the opponent and subjected to various tortures. Thinking of the terrifying consequences of such a fate, Han Li felt a chill in his heart!

He harbored a deep fear of techniques like the Blood Corpse Great Technique!

He knew very well that if he were to encounter that Ghostly Spirit Sect's young master again, he would probably be helpless against his techniques. And the Azure Yuan Sword Technique wasn't cultivated to the Nascent Soul stage, so its magical powers were simply not enough to counter the opponent's techniques.

In this chaotic period of the six demon sects invading Yue Country and the seven sects rising up to counterattack, the battles and killings among cultivators would probably become commonplace. In such times, the pursuit of longevity seemed to have become less important, and rapidly increasing one's strength to ensure survival in the turmoil became the primary goal.

With this in mind, the cultivation plan he had originally planned had to be changed.

The Azure Yuan Sword Technique would have to be temporarily set aside, and he planned to cultivate the "Great Yin Technique" first, which could significantly enhance his strength.

After experiencing the dominance of the Mechanical Puppet, Han Li believed that even if he only cultivated the first layer of the Great Yin Technique, it would be enough to give him some self-defense capabilities. After all, he already had dozens of ready-made Mechanical Puppets.

Of course, he also wanted to study the Puppet Technique Scriptures and hopefully be able to produce some simple Mechanical Puppets in a short period of time, so that the "Great Yin Technique" could become a sustained combat force during his Foundation Establishment period.

After thinking it over repeatedly, Han Li felt that his decision was not wrong. So, in addition to his patrol duties, he began to cultivate the "Great Yin Technique" during his free time. At the same time, he also started to experiment with making basic Mechanical Beasts using the simple materials he had on hand, creatures that could only pounce and bite, similar to dolls.